Sexual harassment and other forms of sexual violence in public spheres are an everyday occurrence for women and girls around the world – in urban and rural areas, in developed and developing countries. In Nepal, the issue of safety of women in public places has not been examined or addressed as a serious issue. In other parts of the world, women's safety has been addressed as an issues of women’s rights and empowerment. The women's safety audit (WSA) has been one important tool to understand the nature and causes of lack of safety in public places. Building on the learning from around the world, DidiBahini, in partnership with UN Women has carried out the WSA in six districts in Nepal to assess the state of women’s safety in public places in the villages. The range and depth of information and data gathered from the WSA provides empirical evidence on women’s safety issues in rural areas of Nepal. Many members of the community defined safety as freedom from various forms of violence.

Gender-related violence in schools is a violation of human rights that also raises additional barriers to learning and can adversely affect the health of young people. In extreme cases it can even drive young people to suicide. Studies also show that violence begets violence, perpetuating a vicious cycle that can last generations.

The purpose of this review is to examine existing approaches in policy, programming and implementation responses to school-related gender-based violence (SRGBV) in the Asia-Pacific region. It seeks to advance our knowledge and learning in this field, both in terms of what we know about the phenomenon and its impact on individuals, as well as how best to address it, including through education.

The study maps existing evidence on gender biased sex selection in the Indian context, weaving in significant social debates and policy developments that have influenced perceptions, and pathways to action. It offers practical suggestions to advance the path of critical inquiry by focusing on different domains such as family and household, education, labour and employment, and on institutions that directly or indirectly aid or combat the practice of sex selection.

This paper addresses the sexual and reproductive health (SRH)—including HIV prevention, care and treatment — and other health service needs of adolescents aged 10 – 17 engaged in selling sex in the Asia Pacific region. While the United Nations defines adolescents as 10 – 19, we purposefully focus on ages 10 – 17 due to the unique legal and policy implications faced by this age group as compared to older cohorts. In regards to terminology, the term “engaged in selling sex” is used for its inclusive and non-stigmatising connotations as well as the benefit of a behavioural description to tailoring programmatic interventions.

The survey attempted to take advantage of Nepal’s attempt to include a third gender category in its national census, the first such attempt in the world. Nearly 1,200 respondents were recruited by trained BDS outreach workers whose aim was to study the identity, demographics, and experiences of sexual and gender minorities in Nepal. The study participants came from 32 of Nepal’s 75 districts, spoke Nepali, Bhojpuri, and Maithill, were primarily Hindu, and included individuals from 150 caste and ethnic groups.

The survey that reveals LGBT people in Nepal continue to face a wide range of obstacles as individuals and as a community. These challenges include widespread bullying in schools, lack of protection from discrimination by employers, paucity of programming to address the reproductive health needs of lesbians, and the lack of sensitive HIV healthcare for transgender women and gay men who are at exponentially higher risk of HIV infection than the general population.

The AIDS response is producing exciting results and we can already foresee a time when the AIDS epidemic could end. Yet, the promises of science, politics and economic development will not be realized if we do not unite with women against violence as an integral part of the HIV response.

This report examines the prevalence and the factors associated with various types of violence against women and girls in South Asia (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka). The report also highlights the gaps where intensive research or interventions might be undertaken. Its focus, themes, and organization, as well as its content and analyses, have benefited greatly from consultation, guidance, and direct inputs from experts in the public, nongovernmental organization (NGO), private, donor, and research sectors of South Asia. This report is one component of the World Bank’s regional program, launched in January 2013, to attend to issues of gender-based violence in its operations, analytics, and collaborative work with other practitioners in South Asia.

Through the Lens of Lesbians, Bisexual Women and Transgender People in Asia is based on research conducted between November 2010 and March 2012 by women’s human rights groups, sexuality rights groups, and gender rights groups in Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines and Sri Lanka. Each country team analyzed its own data and authored a country chapter presented in this regional report.

Women living with HIV have a unique perspective on the AIDS epidemic. Similarly, women who have personally experienced violence can inform the debate on how to stop violence against women in a way that no others can. Together, they can provide valuable insight and experiences to end the AIDS epidemic and violence against women.

This collection of essays by women living with and affected by HIV sheds light on the experiences of women living with HIV in overcoming and addressing violence against women.